Rs 11,000 crore in Reliance shares lie unclaimed, says Gurmeet Chadha warning of IEPF bottlenecks

Over Rs 11,000 crore worth of Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) shares remain unclaimed in the Investor Education and Protection Fund (IEPF), wealth advisory firm Complete Circle Consultants' CIO Gurmeet Chadha flagged, highlighting a growing pile of dormant equity and mutual fund assets stranded amid a sluggish and opaque process of reclaiming such assets.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter) dated May 18, Chadha wrote, “No of unclaimed shares in Reliance (IEPF account) is 7.4 crore .. amount ~Rs 11000 crore. Delhi NCR alone has 1100 crore worth of shares, which are unclaimed.” He also highlighted large sums tied up in shares of Larsen & Toubro (Rs 2,000 crore), ICICI Bank (Rs 1,300 crore), and Asian Paints (Rs 500 crore), in addition to Rs 2,700 crore in unclaimed mutual fund investments.

Chadha urged investors to act swiftly: “Pls get ur shares dematted, ensure all MFs have nomination and bank details updated. Do a forensic search for your family accounts and seek professional help.”

Growing pile of dormant assets

The IEPF, set up to hold unclaimed dividends and shares, has become a repository of dormant wealth as beneficiaries struggle with procedural roadblocks. Chadha’s post triggered a spate of responses from investors who shared long-standing grievances about the inefficiency of the system.

“Getting shares out of IEPF is the most time consuming and inefficient process. There is no proper process/timelines defined between IEPF and the registrar/nodal officers of the companies. People just give up half way,” one user wrote. Several pointed to issues such as mismatches in personal details and a lack of coordination between the IEPF Authority and company registrars.

Another user said, “I am trying to get it done via an agent. The very first thing he told me was it’ll at least take a minimum of 2 years. It’s a scam actually. So much of documentation first and then wait at IEPF!”

Calls for reform mount

The prolonged processing timelines and poor transparency have led to broader calls for policy-level reforms. “Govt must ease the process of claiming shares in IEPF,” one user posted, echoing several others who said they were still awaiting share transfers more than a year after filing their claims.

“Claiming Shares from IEPF is not so easy task. I filled application in IEPF in dec its in processing. infact application filled in last year nov i.e nov 2023 is in process. so back log is very very high..” another user noted.

Abhinav Roy, responding to Chadha’s post, said, “Getting back shares from IEPF is a real pain. Have applied for my father’s shares and it’s been 1.5 yrs still not got the shares credited inspite of everything being approved from the RTA!”

Chadha’s comments serve as a reminder of the importance of regular portfolio maintenance and documentation hygiene in an environment where administrative red tape can erode investor wealth.

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